Page 10 - Issue 44

back to an S-10 rear end. In fact,
the entire chassis and suspension
are S-10. He purchased an S-10
that had already been converted
to V8 power just for the swap. He
did still have to move the engine
back about six inches. Air bags
in the back and air shocks up
front allow Buddy to change ride
height at any time. He’s also added
lowering blocks to the rear and
notched and box the frame so the
cab will fi t properly.
Body mods are many, starting
with a healthy six-inch chop and
seven inch channel. Buddy thought
he was done at that point, but
when he realized that with just
those two changes his knees were
going to hit the dash. He realized
that he had more work to do. He
added another foot to the rear of
the cab, which solved his space
issues. In fact, once he added the
Toyota truck 60/40 bench seat,
he and his wife Tara have been
able to cruise in comfort. The
front bumper is a mashup of a ‘52
Chevy and the bullet nose from a
‘50 Ford. The rear is a narrowed
‘72 Chevy pickup bumper with
some Cadillac Dagmars welded on.
Other cool addons are a sunroof,
tilt steering and a set of train horns.
According to Buddy, behind
every strong man, there’s a
great woman, and that’s his wife,
Tara. “Whichever way I go, she
supports me”. You can’t ask for
more than that.
Buddy’s son Michael has
established a wonderful
organization for special needs
children to get them out
and interacting with others
in a motorsports-centric
environment. Please visit
thespecialneedsforracing.com
for more details.

10 RAT ROD MAGAZINE ISSUE FORTY-FOUR

6x11 ChurchRat.indd 10 6/1/17 8:54 AM